About

WHILE SATELLITES DANCE - PAULO ARRAIANO - TAL Tech Art Lab - RIO DE JANEIRO 
The contemporary Portuguese artist Paulo Arraiano presents his first solo exhibition in Brazil entitled While Satellites Dance, opening on 24 September at TAL Tech Art Lab Gallery, located in the old Bhering Factory, in Rio de Janeiro’s harbour district. 
Paulo Arraiano held numerous solo and group exhibitions as well as site specific projects, of which stands out "Point of View" at Palace Of Pena (Sintra, Portugal); "Down to Earth" at The Dot Project Gallery (London, United Kingdom); “1/81” Coa Museum (V. N. Foz Côa, Portugal); "Fold/Fault" at Forty/Forty Gallery (Warsaw, Poland); “Circles Of Hope”, Trädgården (Stockhoml, Sweden) and many others. The artist has also participated in multiple international and public art projects and his works are part of various public collections, such as Luciano Benetton (Italy); Zewnetrznej Sztuki Foundation; (Poland); D. Luís Foundation / Museum Quarter, (Portugal), Pestana Group Collection / Cidadela Art District (Portugal); Museé d'Art Moderne (Luxembourg) and the CAC Museum (Malaga, Spain). 
For his latest exhibition the artist shows works made only in 2016 that consists mainly of two-dimensional pieces and installation. Paintings in large and small formats are presented and displayed in the gallery, creating their own rhythm and a feeling of closeness and remoteness, such as the zoom in and zoom out of images sent by satellites. This new series is inspired by human relationship within the contemporary society context, controlled by artificial satellites. In a critical reflection of his time, such as satellites moving and drifting in certain orbits, Paulo Arraiano uses his body and movements based on gestural abstraction, thus creating a direct correlation between the body and the natural flow. The result of this process culminates in images similar to what we see in photographic and digital records made by satellites. In a context of transformation of human perception influenced by the digital innovations of our society, a dialogue is created between the post-digital era and the organic essence of our natural being, immersed in an electronic environment. Those elements symbiotically contribute to drive the body to its ancient basic elements of human existence although constantly perceived by technology. The "digital act" contrasts and coexists with our human nature in an eternal cross communication. The continuous influence of our own accelerated pace, propagates in a new paradigm of new media and digital realities that alters our perception of time, space and reality, in contrast to the availability of a sensory contemplation. We interact through analogic and electronic signals of subtleties and speed, guided by information that travels throughout artificial satellites. Orbit bodies, created by man, thousands of them, are constantly flowing through the sky and directly acting in our daily lives. Far from our eyes, they constantly influence us. We receive their information as we also move by various routes and at varying speeds, virtually connecting sky to earth. The coexistence of our organic and digital aspects is reflected in Paulo Arraiano’s newest creations. His painting invites us to contemplate the deepness of the sky, without loosing the certainty of being part of a continuous accelerated generation of "scrolls and swipes." Embodying cultural and physical shifts, currently redefining the city of Rio de Janeiro, is the former Bhering factory. Located at the port region of the city. 20,000 square meters of what used to be an abandoned German iron and steel construction, now daily occupied by a flock of creative minds. Impressive in its industrial innards, the aspects of a once powerful and afterwards ruined factory, now remains, partly renovated by its tenants, providing a unique type of inspiration. Located at Bhering since 2011, TAL Tech Art Lab held exhibitions and cultural events inside and outside it’s own space. TAL is a gallery, cultural platform and residency program that creates, supports, promotes and conducts contemporary art events, exhibitions and artistic productions, online and offline. Now, after a major renovation, reopens its gallery space with Paulo Arraiano’s solo exhibition. The artist’s works will also be shown at TAL Gallery’s stand at the Vista Pavilion at the ArtRio 2016 - International Art Fair. Text: Gabriela Maciel